Ashley Meadowcroft, 18, was killed after going to the home of his former friend Rebecca Tootle, 20, with his dog
A bride-to-be stabbed an unarmed teenager to death on her front doorstep after she sent text messages in which she talked of ways to justify a "legal killing," a court heard.
Rebecca Tootle, 20, is accused of grabbing a knife and attacking Ashley Meadowcroft, 18, after he turned up at her home with his Pit Bull dog.
She then falsely claimed her former friend had been armed with the blade and even gave herself scratch marks which she wrongly claimed had been caused when she wrestled the knife from him, a jury heard.
As police in Blackburn detained Tootle she allegedly said: "He's a f*****g d**k, he's stabbed me so I took the knife off him and stabbed him in self defence.
"He could have killed me. He could have definitely killed my fiance. He broke into my address. I didn't do it on purpose."
Meadowcroft suffered a fatal knife wound near his left armpit which penetrated his lung and he died in hospital 45 minutes later despite attempts to save him.
Preston Crown Court heard Tootle sent messages on her mobile phone saying: "I'd love to see him break into my house when I'm there because 3 legal marks on me and I can actually kill him."
Tootle, who was living with her fiance Matthew Moran and two other friends, had fallen out with Meadowcroft and the group had moved house to get away from him.
She claimed she had "loads of trouble" with the teenager alleging he had stalked her, robbed her and tried to rape her.
In the run up to the killing, Tootle sent three messages on her mobile phone with the last to her father reading: "Here's an interesting fact, you come into my house when I've told you not to and I'm in the house thress (sic) marks on myself and I can legally kill you."
On September 4 last year, Meadowcroft arrived at Tootle's home with his dog Leo after she and two of her housemates had been smoking a legal high drug called "Happy Joker," it was said.
Meadowcroft was said be "extremely agitated and irate" and one of Tootle's housemates Julian Doyle claimed the teenager was "provoking" the dog into barking and growling. He was shouting up at a bedroom window demanding to speak to Moran and saying: "I'll the dog have every one of you."
Tootle went downstairs and opened the front door but as the dog ran into the property she came back saying: "He tried to stab me - I think I've stabbed him."
Paul Reid QC prosecuting told the jury: "She showed a small mark on one of her arms and was saying: 'I had to take the knife off him because he's mental'.
But Ashley Meadowcroft never had a knife, he did not try to stab the defendant and he caused her no injury to her arm, the court was told.
The defendant was lying about all these matters within a short time of her having plunged the knife into Ashley Meadowcroft's chest, the jury heard.
"It was a knife she had armed herself with from somewhere in the house before she went to confront Ashley Meadowcroft.
"The marks and scratches were self inflicted by the defendant in the moments before the police arrived to cause them to falsely believe that Ashley Meadowcroft was the aggressor with the knife when in fact the truth was just the opposite.
"The idea that a few marks on her would justify her in killing someone who had come into her house was not something that had just occurred to her that night. She had previously spoken about this is messages which police extracted from her mobile phone.
"On the night of the killing, she was quick to make some marks on her skin so as to be able to justify to the police her right to attack him.
"You will probably conclude Ashley Meadowcroft was not welcome that night but nothing that he did justified the defendant in arming herself with the knife and plunging into his body."
In a statement to police Moran -known as 'Mos' - had claimed Meadowcroft had been holding the dog by its collar with a chain wrapped around his knuckles.
He claimed went to speak to Meadowcroft but had had threatened with the chain before the teenager attempted to barge past him into the house. Moran fled upstairs only to hear a female shout: "He's got a knife."
Moments later Meadowcroft was heard shouting: "You just stabbed me" before being seen stumbling backwards down the front path and collapsing.
The court heard in a 999 call minutes before the stabbing Tootle told an operator: "I need police, there's a lad here with a knife and he's kicking off, he's banging on the door, he's got a vicious dog with him, he's taken it off, he's whacking the chain with him, he's threatening to beat my friend up."
In a second 999 call she added: "He's got an American pit-bull with him an illegal dog and he's threatening to use it."
She then handed over the phone to Doyle before being overheard saying: "No Matt, f*****g sort it out now, don't just f*****g stand there talking." The call ended when the victim was heard screaming: "Help me, help me, I've been stabbed."
Mr Reid said Tootle made a number of "unsolicited comments" to police as she questioned.
At a police station she said: "The things you'll do for people - you get arrested for self defence" and she said she hoped Meadowcroft would be "getting arrested when he comes of out of hospital."
When told she was being held for murder, Tootle retorted: "He's died? - how can he be dead when he's stood up?" She added: "I stabbed him. If I didn't it would have been me or my boyfriend. I did it yeh but he came into the house. It was unlocked and he had an illegal dog.
"What if it was me or Mos. I heard the door smash. I went down and he had a knife in his hand. Mos was holding his wrist. I grabbed hold of his hand and tried to get the knife and it went in. If I intended to kill him, I would have stabbed him in the heart."
She also showed superficial scratch on her left forearm to a nurse who examined her and said: "That's what happened when I tried to get the knife off Ash." She later gave a no comment interview but gave a prepared statement through her lawyer. The knife was found in a garden next door.
Tootle now admits Meadowcroft never had the knife but she denies murder. The trial continues.